Jorien Saelens obtained her Master's degree in Dutch and English Linguistics and Literature at the University of Ghent, where she graduated in 2014 with the greatest distinction. During her training, she already demonstrated her enthusiasm for language acquisition with a teaching assignment in the bachelor's program in which she taught younger bachelor students speaking and writing skills, and English lessons during the summer camps of Roeland Language Camps in Cottesmore, England.
At the Department of Translation, Interpreting and Communication at Ghent University, Jorien worked as a research and teaching assistant, focusing on language skills, academic linguistic skills and business communication. This was followed by the publication "A corpus-based analysis of V2 variation in Western Flemish and French Flemish dialects" and various conference presentations, including at the University of Cape Town, South Africa in January 2016.
In April 2016, Jorien founded her own business 'Talkative, Language Matters', which offers translations, proofreading and primarily customized language training. She has taught at a range of companies including Honda, Denys, PILZ, Syntra, CODA-CERVA and Actiris. To learn even more about entrepreneurship and teaching language skills, she moved to Manchester in 2017 with the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs program.
In addition, Jorien is affiliated with the Ghent University Language Center (UCT) as a Dutch-English teacher. She teaches practical language skills in both languages, business modules and various academic skills for doctoral students, such as presentation and writing skills. During the summer of 2018 she taught the Business Translation course of the Summer Course - Language, Profession and Culture, a collaboration between the Dutch Language Union and the UCT, in which bachelor and master students from all over the world improve their professional Dutch language skills.
In the brand new project MuziTaal, Jorien combines her love of language with a different approach: music, for which her enthusiasm is evidenced by her years of commitment in the choir Vox Mago. Together with Patrick Debrabandere, she wants to convince others that language education in combination with other stimuli, such as singing, making music and discovering Ghent's culture, has even more to offer. This approach is shared with others in an all-embracing Dutch immersion course full of music and culture in the inviting context of the city of Ghent.
